


Challenge Accepted

by d_a_f_punk



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Legends: The Old Republic
Genre: F/M, Fluff and Humor, Short One Shot, respect the snacks
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-10-22
Updated: 2017-10-22
Packaged: 2019-01-21 12:56:17
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,182
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12458253
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/d_a_f_punk/pseuds/d_a_f_punk
Summary: In which Lord Nyasha's crew may have literally bitten off more than they can chew.





	Challenge Accepted

The dip was a vibrant green, with a citrusy sharp aroma. It was nestled harmlessly on the counter between some crackers and tuk’ata strips. By Official Decree of Lord Nyasha - and her use of the title meant that this command was important - no one was to touch the snacks before the beginning of holovid night. But whatever this green stuff was, it looked really good, and Lieutenant Pierce had never been one to play by the rules. Shooting a furtive glance over his shoulder, he grabbed a cracker and scooped up a generous helping. Unfortunately for him, Nyasha and Vette picked that moment to walk into the room.

“Pierce, don-” Vette began, stopping abruptly when Nyasha elbowed her in the ribs. Pierce spun around, and started to say something with his mouth full. Then he choked. His eyes boggled, and his face started turning an interesting shade of red.

Nyasha grinned. “Tsk, tsk. Didn’t anybody ever tell you not to eat mysterious food in a Sith house? We like our food spicy.” Pierce glared at her, his eyes leaking water, but said nothing. “What you have just eaten is called zalka. It isn’t traditionally served to non-Sith, but zalka peppers do make a pretty effective tear gas.” She turned to Vette next. “You were going to warn him. How did you know? This is the first time I’ve brought any on board.”

Vette rolled her eyes. “Pirate, remember? And slave? Spent a lot of time in mixed company. And with you, obviously.” When Nyasha still looked skeptical, she took a deep breath. “Annnnd I might have made myself a midnight snack yesterday.”

“Damn it, I knew that was you!”

Pierce managed a muffled chuckle around his mouthful; the sound turned into a sort of choked whimper. Vette grimaced. “Hey, don’t worry, the food punished me more than enough already. Anyway, I handled myself much better than Lieutenant Wimp over there.”

He glared. Swallowed. Cleared his throat. “You wanna say that again?”

“Oooh, the big scary soldier is gonna get me. What’s the matter, you afraid everyone is going to find out that you can’t take the heat?” 

“Oho, you’d better be ready to back that up, little girl.”

Wordlessly, she stalked to the counter, grabbed a cracker, jammed it into the dip, and popped the whole thing in her mouth. Her skin immediately started to flush, but she managed to keep a placid expression on her face as she chewed and swallowed. “Your move, big guy.”

“Enough!” barked Nyasha. “We are grown adults in the heart of Imperial civilization.” The guilty parties looked abashed; she smirked at them. “If you insist on eating all my food to settle a grievance, there are rules that must be observed.”

When Captain Quinn entered the room, the contenders were seated and staring one another down like prizefighters. The bowl and crackers sat on the table between them. Nyasha paced back and forth behind them, delivering a lecture to a laughing Jaesa in a passable imitation of Darth Baras. “Attend, apprentice, to the power of competition. Even now, it drives these two to endure unimaginable levels of pain!” She threw her arms wide in one of Baras’ favorite gestures, accidentally smacking Vette in the side of the head. “Sorry, Vette.” Vette shrugged, and promptly returned her attention to her opponent. Nyasha blinked, then nodded sagely at Jaesa. “See what I mean?”

Quinn cleared his throat. If he had hoped that this would call a halt to the goings-on, he was to be sadly disappointed. Vette and Pierce didn’t even acknowledge him; Jaesa made a heroic effort to calm herself down, but only succeeded in wheezing a little more quietly. 

Nyasha favored him with a bright little smile. “Hello, Captain. Care to join us? These two have a score to settle. There are snacks on the counter, if you like.”

“My lord, I feel I must protest. Surely we do not need to indulge-”

“Captain Quinn!” Nyasha sounded scandalized. She pressed a hand to her heart for emphasis. “This is a question of honor. I was given to understand that the Imperial military takes such matters very seriously. I do hope I wasn’t mistaken.”

Her comically-horrified expression suggested she was only joking, but there was an undercurrent of real danger in her tone. Despite his vaunted professionalism, Quinn had made no secret of his disdain for the rest of the crew. Pierce was a brutish lout, Vette wasn’t even human, and Jaesa could very well be a viper waiting to strike at the very heart of the Empire. (Nyasha had laughed in his face when he’d described her as such. “Stars, Quinn, such melodrama! I didn’t know you had it in you.”) He’d made a point of avoiding all of them outside of work hours, which was no mean feat on a small starship. Getting him to attend the movie night had been like pulling teeth. Nyasha had hit him over the head with arguments about morale and teamwork and improved efficiency until she was nearly purple in the face, unwilling to concede defeat and simply order him to be there. 

There was a moment’s pause. The look they exchanged was, if possible, even more pugilistic than the staring contest happening at the table below. Quinn broke first, bowing slightly. “As you say, my lord. Apologies.” 

The concession was not enough for Nyasha. She continued to stare Quinn down, propping one hand on her hip. “Apology accepted. Will you be staying, then?”This was only the second time he had actually put in an appearance at holovid night. Last week had been awkward, but not unpleasant - everything had gone pretty much according to plan, and everybody had been on their best behavior. Tonight’s entertainment was much more typical - if Quinn left now, Nyasha was pretty sure he would never be back.

Vette and Pierce were sneaking sidelong glances at the ongoing standoff by this point. Jaesa had managed to get herself under control, and was also watching with her head lowered. None of them trusted themselves enough to make eye contact with one another. 

Quinn raised his head to meet Nyasha’s gaze. “Yes, my lord, I think I shall.”

There was an audible whoosh in the room as the entire crew released breaths they hadn’t been aware they were holding. Nyasha only nodded approvingly. “Very well. Now, each challenger must declare what they are willing to wager on the outcome of this duel…”

The eating contest was hard-fought, but Vette emerged victorious. Pierce grudgingly replaced her name with his on the week’s cleaning roster while Nyasha and Jaesa cheered from the couch. Quinn was less demonstrative, but he did manage a bit of polite applause. Vette would swear forevermore that she even saw him smile, just for an instant. Afterwards, when they settled down to the movie, he joined the rest of the rabble on the couch. He sat stiffly at first, but eventually relaxed a bit. And he didn’t complain when Jaesa fell asleep on him halfway through. 

It was enough to be going on with.


End file.
